The Baltimore Ravens dominated the Pittsburgh Steelers 35-7 in a rare blow out between these division rivals. While the last four regular season matchups have been decided by 3 points, the season opener got away from the Steelers due to an uncharacteristic spate of seven turnovers. Ben Roethlisberger single-handedly accounted for five of the turnovers with three interceptions and two fumbles lost.
Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco had a solid game, going 17 of 29 for 224 yards and 3 touchdowns, while Ravens running back Ray Rice accounted for 107 yards and one TD rushing and 42 yards and 1 TD receiving.
GAME PREVIEW:
In one of the most fiercely contested rivalries in the league, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens will face off on opening Sunday, continuing a series of games that are always tough, physical battles and come down to the wire.
These division rivals meet twice a year, frequently adding a third meeting in the playoffs, as they did last year. The Steelers won two of the three meetings last season, including a playoff victory over the Ravens en route to the Steelers Super Bowl appearance against the Green Bay Packers.
The margin of victory in their last four regular season meetings has been 3 points per game. Expect another close matchup on Sunday.
The Steelers are looking to get back to the Promised Land and have largely fortified the team that made it to the Super Bowl last year.
The Ravens meanwhile have added 20 new faces to their 53 man roster. Some key new additions include Lee Evans, the deep threat wide receiver from Buffalo, All Pro fullback Vonta Leach from Houston, and offensive lineman Bryant McKinnie from the Vikings.
Adding these key players to an offense that already included quarterback Joe Flacco, running back Ray Rice and wide receiver Anquan Boldin makes the Ravens offense a force to be reckoned with.
They have definitely gotten the attention of Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin.
“As I sit here today, I am probably a little bit more uneasy than I normally am when we play these guys, because they have so many new guys that we have to account for,” Tomlin said. “I think that’s something that needs to be stated up front about this. They probably know more about us than we know about them.”
Meeting so early in the season and after a shortened training camp, we’ll need to see if all the new pieces the Ravens have added are ready to gel. Given the history of this rivalry, whether they are ready or not, we expect another hard fought contest between the two teams.
